Prognostic value of tumor-infiltrating mast cells in outcome of patients with esophagus squamous cell carcinoma.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the esophagus is one of the most common malignancies of the gastrointestinal tract and carries poor prognosis. The role of mast cell density (MCD) in the prognosis of most human tumors is partly known, and there is a growing body of studies addressing it. However, the prognostic value of MCD has not been investigated in esophageal SCC, and thus, it was the subject during this study. METHODS: In this study, 78 patients with esophageal SCC in pT = 3 were selected, their MCD was evaluated with toluidine blue staining, and the relationship with survival rate was analyzed. Patients were compared in identical groups of lymph node involvement and post-surgery complementary therapy. RESULTS: Survival rate was significantly decreased in patients with high MCD based on Kaplan-Meier analysis (P < 0.001). This relationship was also found in groups with similar lymph node involvement and post-surgery therapies. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the current study showed that high MCD in the invasive edge of tumor is related to tumor progression and decreased survival rate following surgery.